James Dooge

James Dooge
Dooge in 1981
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office
21 October 1981 – 9 March 1982
TaoiseachGarret FitzGerald
Preceded byJohn M. Kelly
Succeeded byGerry Collins
Leader of the Seanad
In office
21 December 1982 – 3 April 1987
TaoiseachGarret FitzGerald
Preceded byEoin Ryan Snr
Succeeded byMick Lanigan
Leader of Fine Gael in the Seanad
In office
20 December 1982 – 10 April 1987
LeaderGarret FitzGerald
Preceded byGemma Hussey
Succeeded byMaurice Manning
Cathaoirleach of Seanad Éireann
In office
16 June 1973 – 29 October 1977
Preceded byMicheál Cranitch
Succeeded bySéamus Dolan
Senator
In office
13 May 1982 – 25 April 1987
ConstituencyNational University
In office
8 October 1981 – 13 May 1982
ConstituencyNominated by the Taoiseach
In office
5 November 1969 – 27 October 1977
ConstituencyIndustrial and Commercial Panel
In office
14 December 1961 – 5 November 1969
ConstituencyLabour Panel
Personal details
Born(1922-07-30)30 July 1922
Birkenhead, Cheshire, England
Died20 August 2010(2010-08-20) (aged 88)
Monkstown, Dublin, Ireland
NationalityIrish
Political partyFine Gael
Spouse
Roni Dooge
(m. 1950; died 1991)
Children2
EducationC.B.C. Monkstown
Alma mater

James Clement Dooge (30 July 1922 – 20 August 2010) was an Irish Fine Gael politician, engineer, climatologist, hydrologist and academic who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1981 to 1982, Leader of the Seanad and Leader of Fine Gael in the Seanad from 1982 to 1987 and Cathaoirleach of Seanad Éireann from 1973 to 1977. He served as a Senator from 1961 to 1977 and 1981 to 1987.

Dooge had a profound effect on the debate over climate change, in the world of hydrology and in politics in the formation of the European Union.

His career spanned academia, politics and international affairs with his roles including a period as Minister for Foreign Affairs, a member of the Presidential Commission during two presidential vacancies, chair of the report that led to the Single European Act (SEA) and the Maastricht Treaty, Professor of Engineering in University College Cork and University College Dublin, President of the International Council for Science (ICSU), President of the Royal Irish Academy and Chair of the Irish Film Board.[1]

Dooge was a member of the Fellowship of Engineering, and worked as an expert consultant to a wide range of specialised United Nations agencies including UNESCO, World Meteorological Organization (WMO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). He also acted in an expert consultancy role to DGXII (Research) at the European Commission.

He was as only the second senator since 1937 to be appointed to the cabinet. In the world of academia he is known for his numerous publications in the field of hydrology, having developed unit hydrograph theory in 1959,[2] and is generally regarded as a pioneer in the field.[3][4] His work in Europe through the Dooge Committee led to the SEA and the Maastricht Treaty.[5]

Upon his death in 2010, UNESCO-IHE described him as a "towering figure and pioneer in hydrology",[4] while the Chancellor of the National University of Ireland, Maurice Manning, described him as "that rare phenomenon in Irish life, a public intellectual whose life was devoted, without posture, to the public service".[6] John Sweeney, one of the scientists as part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change honoured with the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, described him as "perhaps one of the most important, prolific and distinguished scientists of the past generation".[7]

  1. ^ "Eminent senator, statesman and man of science". The Irish Times. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 27 October 2010. Retrieved 7 September 2010.
  2. ^ J.C.I. Dooge, "Parameterization of hydrologic processes", JSC Study Conference on Land Surface Processes in Atmospheric General Circulation Models, 243–284 (1959)
  3. ^ "Jim Dooge, One of the Pioneers of Hydrology passed away". European Geosciences Union. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
  4. ^ a b "UNESCO-IHE Honorary Fellow Professor James C. I. Dooge died at the age of 88 on 20 August 2010". UNESCO-IHE. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
  5. ^ "Godfather of the European Union: Altiero Spinelli-Victory in Sight". The Bruges Group. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
  6. ^ "Renaissance man devoted to public service". The Irish Times. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 21 February 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
  7. ^ "What is Ireland's climate future?". Science Pin. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2010.